Editor-in-Chief

Biography of Kurt S. Zaenker

Kurt S. Zäenker, a Professor at the University of Witten/Herdecke, Germany, is an immunologist and a tumor immunologist. He has authored and co-authored more than 650 publications and edited 24 books and special issues of journals. His research focuses on basic sciences in cell migration, a molecular pre-requisite for metastasis formation, and on cell fusion, a pre-requisite for new hybrid cell entities. In his role as an editor-in-chief and member of multiple scientific boards, review committees and scientific organizations, he takes responsibility for highest standards in research communication and development and education in medical science, and organized more than 20 internationally recognized conferences.

Co-Editor

Biography of Simone Mocelin

Dr. Simone Mocelin obtained Doctorate in Oncology and Surgical Oncology from the University of Padova Italy. Dr. Mocelin is presently serving as an Associate Professor of Surgery and Gastroenterology in the same University and he is also a Surgeon at the Surgical Oncology Unit. He has contributed more the 250 Publications having citation around 9110. He is a member of the editorial board of several international peer-review medical journals and is an editor of the Cochrane Colorectal Cancer Group.

Regional Editor

Europe

Biography of D. Santini

Prof. Daniele Santini obtained the PhD in Immunophysiology at the University of Palermo. He has been Associate Professor of General Pathology at the Campus Bio-Medical University and Head of the Oncologic Day Hospital's Simple Operational Unit (UOS) at the Politecnico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico in Rome. As Co-Head of the Laboratory of Transnational Oncology, he leads numerous preclinical and translational studies with the collaboration of his staff. He is a member of many scientific societies (AIOM, ISO, ESMO GOIM, etc). He is an effective member of the Editorial Board and a reviewer of papers of some international scientific journals. He is author of over 300 publications in national and international scientific journals featuring impact factors.

Frontiers Section Editor

Biography of J. Schwartz

I obtained my training for Oral Maxillofacial Pathology at Harvard School of Medicine and Dana –Farber Cancer Center and I am presently Director of Oral Maxillofacial Pathology Research at the College of Dentistry, University of Illinois. My first studies focused on viral carcinogenesis and immune regulation. Since the 1970s we reported early detection and prevention of oral cancer can be influenced by diet and molecular pathways that regulate epithelial cell growth and differentiation. These associations are examined through animal models to study mucosa responses to carcinogens and immunology and epithelial biology of normal and tumorigenic cells, cell lines.

Editorial Board Members

R.J. AblinUniversity of Arizona College of MedicineArizona, AZUSABiography

Biography of R.J. Ablin

Dr. Ablin is a Professor at University of Arizona College of Medicine, Arizona Cancer Center and BIO5 Institute and President, Robert Benjamin Ablin Foundation for Cancer Research, founded in memory of his father. He was honored as recipient of the First Award for Scientific Excellence. He discovered prostate-specific antigen (PSA), and was a nominee for the Lasker Award. He is a pioneer of cryosurgery and the concept of “cryoimmunotherapy” for the treatment of cancer. He is a member of Sigma Xi, Phi Beta Kappa and numerous professional societies. He has been an invited speaker, contributed numerous articles, co-editor of the book series Cancer Metastasis -Biology and Treatment and serves on the editorial board of several journals.

Biography of J.M. Argiles

Professor Josep M. Argiles was born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain in 1956 and completed his undergraduate studies in Biology at the University of Barcelona graduating with a First Class Honours Degree and Special Prize for the best B.Sc. (1979). In 1981 he received his Doctorate in Biochemistry from the same university with Cum Laude obtaining the Prize for the best doctorate of that year. In 1987 he undertook further postdoctoral training in the Laboratory of Metabolism and Molecular Biology at the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland. He later became Full Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of Cancer at the Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona being the leader of a research group interested in cancer cachexia.

Biography of A.V. Bakin

Dr. Andrei V. Bakin obtained his Ph.D. degree (1990) in Molecular Biology from Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia. Since 2003, Dr. Bakin has been Associate/Assistant Professor of Oncology at Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY, USA. Additionally, since 2014, he has also been performing the role of Research Associate/Assistant Professor, State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA. Dr. Bakin, as an author/co-author, has published more than 50 articles in various journals, having a noteworthy number of total citations, i.e. over 5,000. His professional memberships include the following: American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (1996-present), Metastasis Research Society (2004-present), American Society for Cell Biology (2004-present), and Tumor Microenvironment Society (2006-present).

Biography of J.R. Bertino

Joseph R. Bertino, MD, is Professor at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and director of the school's Cancer Institute of New Jersey Bertino in New Brunswick. He has been internationally recognized for his role in finding curative treatments for leukemia and lymphoma. During his academic career, He received several awards and honors for his research accomplishments. Currently, he is the associate editor for Cancer Research and Clinical Cancer Research and also the editor of the Encyclopedia of Cancer. He is the author and co-author of more than 400 scientific publications. His research elucidated the mechanisms of methotrexate resistance in experimental models, and in cancer patients.

Biography of M.C. Botelho

Monica C. Botelho has completed her Ph.D with Distinction in 2011 from the Faculty of Medicine of Porto University. She is the Head of Lab of Health Promotion and Chronic Diseases Unit of the National Institute of Health (INSA) Dr. Ricardo Jorge, a premier health service organization in Porto, Portugal and Researcher at Instituto of Investigação e Inovação em Saúde (i3S), Group of Metabolism, Nutrition and Endocrinology, of Porto University, Portugal. She has published more than 50 papers and has an H Index of 17 (Google Scholar metrics). Her areas of expertise include: Neglected Tropical Diseases associated Cancers and Infertility, Molecular carcinogenesis of schistosome associated squamous cell carcinoma of the bladder with mouse experiments as models of carcinogenesis, Effects of schistosoma-derived estrogenic molecules on cell lines and the accumulation and biodistribution of these molecules in animal models, and their possible carcinogenic effect and Schistosomiasis associated catechol-estrogens as biomarkers of cancer and infertility.

Biography of E. Bouffet

Dr. Eric Bouffet is Professor of Paediatrics in the University of Toronto, Garron Family Chair in Childhood Cancer Research, Associate Senoior Scientist at the Research Institute, and Head of the Neuro-oncology Section in the Division of Haematology/Oncology at The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto. His research interests are in the area of novel treatments and clinical trials in children with brain tumours. He is author or co-author of over 380 peer-reviewed manuscripts and author/co-author on numerous book chapters in the field of neuro-oncology.. In 2016, he became the President of the International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP).

Biography of R.M. Bukowski

Dr. Bukowski is an emeritus staff at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, and was recently the Deputy Director of the Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Center and Director of the Experimental Therapeutics at the Cleveland Clinic Cancer Center. He held the James Zito Chair in Cancer Research at the Taussig Cancer Center from 2001 to 2008. Dr. Bukowski is a fellow of the American College of Physicians and a member of numerous professional societies, including the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and the American Society of Hematology. He is a lifelong researcher with interests in immunotherapy, the immunology and biology of renal cell carcinoma, and new drug development and investigation. Currently Dr. Bukowski is a member of the board of directors of the Kidney Cancer Association, & its medical committee.

Biography of R.J.F. Catarino

Dr. Raquel Catarino is a researcher in the Molecular Oncology Unit, Portuguese Institute of Oncology Francisco Gentil Porto, Portugal. She completed her Medical degree in 2013 and is a Medical Resident in Urology at Pedro Hispano Hospital. She completed her PhD in Biomedical Sciences in 2007 and a post-doctoral fellowship (2013) at Sackler Faculty of Medicine, University of Tel-Aviv, Israel. She has published more than 50 papers in scientific journals in the field of molecular oncology and pharmacogenomics.

Biography of E. Choy

Dr. Choy is the Director of Sarcoma Research at the Division of Hematology Oncology at MGH and Assistant Professor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School. He specialized in the medical management of patients with sarcomas, gastrointestinal stromal tumors, chordomas, and desmoid tumors. He works closely with a team of world class surgical, orthopedic, and radiation oncologists as well as connective tissue pathologists and radiologists to provide optimal care for his patients. He directs a clinical trials program at the MGH Center for Sarcoma and Connective Tissue Oncology that includes 9-12 active phase I-III clinical trials.

Biography of R. Clarke

Robert Clarke, Ph.D., D.Sc. leads Georgetown University Medical Center’s high performance research community, expanding its extramural funding and promoting the efforts of its faculty. Also, he works in collaboration with the Georgetown University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences to cultivate and strengthen the research components of the University’s graduate programs and the quality of graduate biomedical education. Clarke is co-director of the Georgetown-Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center breast cancer program, a professor in the Department of Oncology, and an internationally known breast cancer researcher.

K.A CooneyUniversity of Utah School of MedicineSalt Lake City, MIUSABiography

Biography of K.A Cooney

Kathleen A. Cooney, MD, is Professor and Chair of the Department of Internal Medicine, H.A. and Edna Benning Presidential Endowed Chair, at the University of Utah. She received her M.D. degree from the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine at Philadelphia in 1984. Her research led to the important discovery of a recurrent mutation in the HOXB13 gene that increases the chances of being diagnosed with prostate cancer. As an oncologist, Cooney focuses on treating advanced forms of prostate cancer.

J.M. DalyTemple University School of MedicinePhiladelphia, PAUSABiography

Biography of J.M. Daly

Dr. John M. Daly was Dean of the School of Medicine at Temple University from 2002 to 2011. Prior to that, he had been the Stimson Professor and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at the New York Presbyterian-Cornell Medical Center in New York City since 1993. He was previously Professor of Surgery and Chief of the Division of Surgical Oncology at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Daly is an internationally renowned surgeon whose clinical work and research are in the fields of surgical oncology, metabolism, and nutrition, authoring more than 300 peer-reviewed publications and 100 book chapters. He has served on the editorial boards of dozens of medical publications.

Biography of D.N. Danforth

Dr. Danforth received his M.S. degree in physiology from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM and M.D. degree from Northwestern University, Chicago IL. He received his residency training in general surgery at the New York Hospital-Cornell medical Center in NYC, and received fellowship training in surgical oncology at the National Cancer Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD, and the M.D. Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute, Houston TX. He is a Staff Clinician in the Surgery Branch, National Cancer Institute, NIH, Bethesda. He has published more than 100 scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals.

Biography of L. Dubeau

Louis Dubeau received his M.D.C.M. in 1979 and his Ph.D. in biochemistry in 1981, both from McGill University in Canada. He moved to University of Southern California in 1985 to study cancer biology and epigenetics under the sponsorship of Dr. Peter Jones. He became assistant professor in the Department of Pathology at University of Southern California in 1989, where he is currently Professor of Pathology and Medical Director of Molecular Pathology. His research is focused on the biology of ovarian carcinoma. Significant contributions include our understanding of the site of origin of these tumors and of the mechanisms underlying their hormonal and genetic risk factors.

Biography of W.S. El-Deiry

Wafik El-Deiry, MD, PhD, FACP is the Deputy Cancer Center Director for Translational Research, co-Leader of the Molecular Therapeutics Program, Professor of Oncology, and the William Wikoff Smith Endowed Chair in Cancer Research at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia. He earned MD/PhD degrees from University of Miami School of Medicine and completed internal medicine residency and medical oncology fellowship at Johns Hopkins. He discovered cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitor p21(WAF1) as a p53 target gene and cell cycle inhibitor. This is the most highly cited original work published in Cell. He has >350 peer-reviewed publications and edited 5 books. He is an elected member of the Johns Hopkins University Society of Scholars.

Biography of J.M. Ford

Dr. Ford is a medical oncologist and geneticist at Stanford, devoted to studying the genetic basis of breast and GI cancer development, treatment and prevention. He received his M.D. degree from the School of Medicine in 1989. He is currently Professor of Medicine (Oncology) and Genetics, and Director of the Stanford Cancer Genetics Clinic and the Cancer Genomics Program at the Stanford University Medical Center. His clinical interests include the diagnosis and treatment of patients with a hereditary pre-disposition to cancer. He is an editor of numerous scientific journals, including Cancer Research, DNA Repair, and PLoS Genetics. He has recently been named the founding Editor-in-Chief of JCO Precision Oncology.

Biography of H.S. Friedman

Dr. Henry S. Friedman is an internationally renowned academic adult and pediatric neuro-oncologist who helps to lead The Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke University. He is the author of more than 500 peer reviewed articles, reviews, and book chapters and has presented extensively at both international and national meetings. He is the senior editor of CNS Oncology, was the Associate Editor for the Neuro-Oncology Section of Cancer for 15 years and is a reviewer for over 25 academic journals.

Biography of M.D. Galigniana

We study the biological role of two Hsp90-binding immunophilins, FKBP51 and FKBP52. We have postulated a novel model for the mechanism of action of steroid receptors, where FKBP52 links the receptor-Hsp90 complex to motor proteins favouring receptor retrotransport on cytoskeletal tracts, its passage through the nuclear pore and transcriptional activation. FKBP51 antagonizes these effects. The model was extended to other factors (HSF1, p53, NF-kB) and proposes that the FKBP52/FKBP51 expression ratio regulates the final biological response of factors with pleiotropic action. We have also demonstrated that both immunophilins regulate neurodifferentiation, and have identified FKBP51 as a novel mitochondrial factor. It shows antiapoptotic action, is overexpressed in tumor cells and enhances telomerase activity.

Biography of A.J. Giaccia

Dr. Amato J. Giaccia obtained his Ph.D. in Pathology/Molecular Biology from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. He is a Professor of Radiation Oncology, Associate Chair for Research & Director of the Division of Radiation & Cancer Biology in the Department of Radiation Oncology. He also is the Director of Basic Science at the Stanford Cancer Institute and heads the Radiation Biology Program in Stanford’s Cancer Center. He co-authored the sixth & seventh editions of the textbook, “Radiation Biology for the Radiologist,” with Professor Eric Hall from Columbia. In addition, he is currently the “Jack, Lulu and Sam Willson Professor in Cancer Biology” in the Stanford University School of Medicine.

Biography of R. Giavazzi

Dr Raffaella Giavazzi obtained a doctorate (PhD) in Pharmacology from the University of Milan, Italy. She holds the Qualification of Professor in General Pathology and in Applied Biology. She was a post-doc Fellow at NCI-FCRDC, Frederick, (USA) and Assistant Professor at MD Anderson Hospital, Houston (USA).
Currently Dr Giavazzi is Head of the Laboratory of Biology and Treatment of Metastasis at the Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research and she is in the Board of Directors at the University of Trento, Italy.
She has published approximately 200 articles in the field of Cancer Research and communicated approximately 400 studies in national and international congresses.

Biography of E. Grassilli

Dr. Grassilli received her Ph.D. degree from the University of Modena, Italy, and pursued her post-doctoral research at Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia and European Institute of Oncology, Milan, studying the molecular mechanisms of apoptosis and their relevance in the response to chemotherapy. More recently, she co-founded Bionsil, a spin-off of the University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy, aimed at identifying and characterizing novel targets for molecular diagnosis and therapy of drug-resistant cancers. From 2014 she is Assistant Professor at the University of Milano-Bicocca where she continues her work on p65BTK, a novel Bruton’s Tyrosine isoform previously identified as a new target of therapy in colon cancers.

Biography of H.-H Hann

Following Oncology Fellowship at Sidney Farber Cancer Institute, she joined Baruch Blumberg, the Nobel Laureate for discovery of HBV, at Fox Chase Cancer Center and worked on HBV, HCC, cancer enhancing effects of iron and anti-tumor effect of deferoxamine. Her new discovery included serum ferritin as the tumor and prognostic marker for neuroblastoma. Since 1988 she as the tenured Professor of Medicine and Director of Liver Disease Prevention Center at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, has continued work on HBV as the Site Principal Investigator of 32 clinical trials evaluating anti-HBV agents (Lamivudine, Adefovir, Telbivudine, Entecavir, Tenofovir and TAF(Tenofovir alafenamide).

Biography of R. Haq

Dr. Haq is a physician-scientist who specializes in metastatic melanoma. He received his MD and PhD at the University of Toronto and the Ontario Cancer Institute with various honors. His internal medicine training was in the Osler Housestaff Training Program at Johns Hopkins Hospital, followed by fellowship training in oncology at Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Care. At the completion of his clinical training, he was a post-doctoral fellow with Dr David E. Fisher (Massachusetts General Hospital). He has been a contributing author of numerous publications, including those published in Cancer Cell, Nature, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA. At Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, devotes part of his time to developing the next generation of melanoma therapeutics and translating them to innovative investigator-initiated clinical trials. His clinical practice is dedicated to patients with melanoma.

Biography of D. Ilson

Dr. Ilson is attending physician and member at Memorial Hospital, and professor of medicine at Weill-Cornell Medical College. His research interest is upper gastrointestinal cancer with a focus on esophageal cancer. His research focuses on the study of new agents in advanced esophageal cancer and in combined modality therapy. He sits on U.S. NCCN Gastric Cancer guideline panel, and the GI Cancer committees of Alliance/CALGB and NRG/RTOG. He is the former chair of the U.S. NCI Esophageal and Gastric Cancers Clinical Trial Task Force.

Biography of M.D. Incalci

Maurizio D'Incalci obtained his Medical Degree cum Laude from the University of Milan (1978). Then he specialized in Pharmacology (1979) and in Oncology (1981). He worked in the Molecular Pharmacology Laboratory, NCI, Bethesda (1983-84). He is chief of the Cancer Chemotherapy Laboratory (since 1986) and of the Oncology Department (since 1996) at the Mario Negri Institute. He has been member of the board of several National and International organizations as EORTC, SENDO, SIC and he’s currently member of AIRC, MaNGO, Fondazione Mattioli, Fondazione Buzzi. He is author of more than 500 papers on cancer pharmacology and of several book chapters.

Biography of E. Iorio

Dr Egidio Iorio is a Researcher of Department of Cell Biology and Neurosciences at the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (Rome- Italy). Master Degree in Biological Sciences and Specialization in Clinical Pathology at University of Rome "La Sapienza". PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at University of Rome "Tor Vergata". The main research interests of Dr Iorio were focused on alterations in metabolism in relation to cell differentiation, tumor growth and cell death. He is actively involved in projects to develop original molecular imaging methods for the identifications of magnetic resonance spectroscopy biomarkers of tumour cell proliferation and response to therapy.

Biography of B. Kaina

Dr. Bernd Kaina obtained his Ph.D. in genetics in 1976 from the Universtity of Halle, Germany. He completed his postdoctoral training at the Institute of Genetics in Gatersleben and continued his studies on DNA repair at the Department of Molecular Biology in Leiden, Netherlands, at the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg and, as a Heisenberg fellow, at the Department of Genetics of the Nuclear Research Center in Karlsruhe, Germany. In 1993 he was appointed full professor for molecular toxicology at the Institute of Toxicology of the University of Mainz, where he is since 2003, director of the institute. He is author of more than 280 scientific publications and serves as editorial board member and reviewer for several scientific journals.

Biography of D. Khayat

Dr. Khayat received his medical degree from the Pierre and Marie Curie University in Paris, where he completed his doctorate in tumor immunology and was Chief Clinical Assistant for the Department of Medical Oncology. He has taught at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Pierre and Marie Curie University in France, and Sino‐French Institute of Onco‐Hematology in China. He has been a visiting professor at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine.

Biography of D.V. Krysko

Dmitri V. Krysko graduated from the Saratov State Medical University (Russia) in 1998 and then he moved to Belgium, where, in 2006, he obtained the Ph.D. degree from the Ghent University (Belgium). Dr. Krysko worked as a FWO Postdoctoral Scientist in the lab of Prof. Vandenabeele (VIB-Ghent University). From October 2016 Dr. Krysko has been appointed as Associate Professor at the Department of Basic Medical Sciences at Faculty of Medicine and Heath Sciences in Ghent University and a group leader of the CRIG (Cancer Research Institute Ghent). Dr. Krysko received several awards for his scientific work and serves as an Editorial Board Member of “Apoptosis” and “Mediators of Inflammation”. He published more than 60 articles in peer-reviewed international journals.

D. LiaoUniversity of Florida College of Medicine Gainesville, FLUSABiography

Biography of D. Liao

Daiqing Liao, Ph.D., conducted his postdoctoral training at Yale University School of Medicine and is currently an Associate Professor at University of Florida College of Medicine and a member of UF Health Cancer Center. The research in his laboratory focuses on cancer epigenetics, metabolism, and signaling pathways as well as development of small molecule therapeutics targeting lysine acetyltransferases (HATs), deacetylases (HDACs), and metabolism for cancer therapy.

Biography of A. Macrì

Antonio Macrì is Associate Professor of Surgery at University of Messina and, on December 16, 2013 has obtained the national scientific enabling at the functions of Full Professor of Surgery. Over the last 25 years, he has focused his scientific interests on the topics related to the abdominal oncology and, in the last 15 years, his principal field of research has became the treatment of peritoneal surface malignancies. He is responsible of the “Peritoneal Surface Malignancies and Sarcoma Program” of the University Hospital Medical School of Messina.

Biography of R. Meredith

Ruby F. Meredith, MD, PhD is a Professor of Radiation Oncology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She is former Director of Research in that department, and a Senior Scientist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham Comprehensive Cancer Center. Her career includes basic science investigations and involvement in the conduct of scores of clinical trials, including 50 for targeted radionuclide therapy. Her activities are reflected in publications, memberships of scientific associations and she has served in numerous committees. Among her honors and awards, she has been selected for Best Doctor listings (greater than 10 years).

Biography of M. Mita

Dr. Monica M. Mita is a medical oncologist in Los Angeles, California and is affiliated with multiple hospitals in the area, including Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA, and UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica, CA, USA. She received her medical degree from Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy and has been in practice for more than 20 years. She is currently co-director of the Experimental Therapeutics Program at the Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute, Los Angeles, CA, USA. Her main research focus is on phase I clinical trials in oncology, novel drugs, and targeted therapies, with more than 50 peer-reviewed articles published. In addition, her clinical areas focus on breast cancers and sarcomas.

Biography of R. Narayanan

Ramaswamy Narayanan earned his Ph.D. in biochemistry in 1980 from the National University of Dublin, Ireland. He has worked at the NCI, CDC, the Yale University, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and at the Hoffmann-La Roche, Inc. He has published over 140 peer-reviewed publications and numerous book chapters. He is a Professor at Florida Atlantic University for the last seventeen years, where his work has led to two issued patents and the first Biotech spin-off company for the University. His research revolves around the genomics of cancer and other diseases.

Biography of K. Nath

Kavindra Nath is a Research Assistant Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Molecular Imaging Laboratory. He did his M.S. in Biochemistry, and Ph.D. in Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Spectroscopy (MRI/MRS). In Ph.D. His current research at University of Pennsylvania is utilizing multi-nuclear (1H, 31P, 13C) MRS and other techniques in vitro and in vivo in order to delineate the mode of action of various monocarboxylate transport (MCTs), mitochondrial pyruvate carrier (MPC) and electron transport chain (ETC) inhibitors, which distinguishes normal cells from malignant cells and potentiates the activities of various chemotherapeutic drugs, hyperthermia and radiation therapy in a variety of human cancers.

Biography of K. Pantel

Prof Pantel is Chairman of the Institute of Tumour Biology at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf. The institute is part of the Centre of Experimental Medicine and the University Cancer Center Hamburg (UCCH). The pioneer work of Prof Pantel in the field of cancer micrometastasis, circulating tumor cells and circulating nucleic acids (ctDNA, microRNAs) is reflected by more than 400 publications. He has been awarded the AACR Outstanding Investigator Award 2010, German Cancer Award 2010, and ERC Advanced Investigator Grant 2011. Moreover, Prof Pantel coordinates the European TRANSCAN group “CTC-SCAN”, the European IMI consortium CANCER-ID (www.cancer-id.eu) on blood-based “Liquid Biopsies”.

Biography of L.J. Penn

Dr. Penn (PhD) is a cancer research scientist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. Her research focuses on the molecular basis of cancer and the development and application of novel anti-cancer therapeutics. She is also a Professor in the Medical Biophysics Department at the University of Toronto and Director of the University Health Network’s Office of the Research Trainee.
Dr. Penn is a scientific advisor on several national/international review panels and is on several journal editorial boards. She holds the Canada Research Chair in Molecular Oncology and is the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate Degree from Linkoping University in Sweden.

Biography of C. Petrovas

My major scientific objective is to understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms of the development of “effective” immune responses as well as the manipulation of these responses, to develop novel immunotherapies. During my thesis (School of Medicine, National University of Athens, Greece) I studied the development of antibodies against major auto-antigens and the function of anti-phospholipid antibodies in autoimmunity and HIV infection. Currently, I am the head of the Tissue Analysis Core at VRC and our research focuses in the characterization of the dynamics of tissue immune cells in HIV/SIV and cancer and developing tools to understand the interplay between inflammation, adaptive immunity and tissue antigens.

G.H. ReamanCenter for Drug Evaluation and ResearchWashington, DCUSA

R. RoeslerFederal University of Rio Grande do SulPorto AlegreBrazilBiography

Biography of R. Roesler

I am a professor at Daping Hospital and Research Institute of Surgery, Third Military Medical University, China. I received my Ph.D from Seoul National university of Korea. I completed my postdoctoral training in the Department of Molecular Oncology at Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute. My research interests include non-coding RNA function in development and progression of cancer and the development and evaluation of novel therapies for cancer.

J. SchlomNational Cancer Institute, NIHBethesda, MDUSA

A.K. ShamsuddinUniversity of Maryland School of MedicineBaltimore, MDUSABiography

Biography of A.K. Shamsuddin

Dr. AbulKalam M. Shamsuddin is Professor of Pathology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore. He received his medical degree from Dhaka University, and PhD from University of Maryland. He is the pioneering scientist to demonstrate the anti-cancer and immune enhancing function of inositol and inositol hexaphosphate (www.ip-6.net).
Dr. Shamsuddin has published several books, many book-chapters and numerous scientific papers. He serves in the Editorial Board of several cancer related journals; and is a highly sought after speaker in international scientific meetings.

Biography of F.A. Sinicrope

Frank A. Sinicrope, is Professor of Medicine and Oncology at
Mayo Clinic, Co-leader of the GI cancer program at the Mayo
Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center, Director for GI Translational
Research for the North Central Cancer Treatment Group legacy
studies, member of the GI Cancer Steering Committee of the
National Cancer Institute, and vice-chair of the Cancer
Prevention Committee and GI Committee of the Alliance for
Clinical Trials in Oncology. Dr. Sinicrope is a board-certified
medical oncologist and gastroenterologist, a recognized leader in
molecular-based risk stratification of colon cancer and conducts
research on experimental therapeutics approaches to reverse
drug resistance.

Biography of P. Storz

Peter Storz, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor at the Mayo Clinic. He obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Stuttgart, Germany, and was a postdoctoral fellow and instructor at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School in Boston, before he joined Mayo Clinic. Work in his laboratory focuses on inter- and intracellular signaling that leads to development and progression of pancreatic cancer. Specific interests are to understand the roles of acinar-to-ductal metaplasia and immune cell infiltration in these processes.

Biography of S. Stylli

Dr Stanley Stylli is a cancer research scientist at the Department of Neurosurgery, The Royal Melbourne Hospital and an Honorary Fellow of the Department of Surgery (RMH) at The University of Melbourne, Australia. He received his Master of Science and PhD degrees from The University of Melbourne. His research interests include glioma biology, invasion and identifying novel therapeutic targets for glioma. Currently he is investigating the influence of invadopodia in glioma invasion, the response of invadopodia to various therapeutic approaches and the role of tumour-derived exosomes (TEX) for invadopodia biogenesis in glioma.

E. TaharaHiroshima Cancer Seminar FoundationHiroshimaJapan

M.M. TaketoKyoto UniversityKyotoJapan

M. TallmanNorthwestern University Feinberg School of MedicineChicago, ILUSABiography

Biography of M. Tallman

Martin S. Tallman, M.D. is Chief, Leukemia Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Professor of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, USA. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Internal Medicine. He is a member of numerous committees of national, regional, and international professional. He currently serves as Co-Chair of the Acute Myeloid Leukemia Panel of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN). He has contributed a large body of work to the literature addressing the diagnosis, biology, and treatment of acute leukemia and other hematologic malignancies. He completed two terms as an Associate Editor of Blood. He is a reviewer for many professional publications. He also serves as the Editor-in-Chief of Clinical Haematology: Best Practice and Research.

Biography of M.A. Vooijs

Marc Vooijs is a division leader in the program for basic and translational cancer biology and a full professor and head of laboratory in the department of Radiotherapy (MAASTRO) at Maastricht University Medical Centre. He obtained his PhD at the University of Amsterdam developing tissue-specific KO models and did postdocs at Washington University St Louis and the Hubrecht Institute working on NOTCH signalling in cancer. Maastro lab focuses on the tumour microenvironment and treatment response in cancer and the lab uses normal stem cell models and advanced in vivo imaging to study tumour hypoxia and normal tissue repair. Web: www.maastrolab.nl

Biography of J. Wu

Dr. Wu is a Professor in the Department of Pathology and the Peggy and Charles Stephenson Endowed Chair in Cancer Translational Research at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. Recently, Dr. Wu discovered recurrent JAK1 truncating mutations in endometrial cancer and frequent JAK2 deletion in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) involving tumor immune evasion, and as a potential mechanism of resistance to immune checkpoint therapy. Dr. Wu has authored 80 original research papers plus additional review articles and book chapters. He has served on National Institutes of Health (NIH), NCI, DOD, and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) grant review panels.

Biography of G. XU

Prof. Guoxiong Xu (MD, PhD) is a Scientist and Director of Center Laboratory in Jinshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. He obtained his PhD degree in Biology from York University in Canada. Dr. Xu is a molecular and cell biologist and has a proven track record on the molecular biology of cancer. He has presented his work in many national and international scientific conferences. His research works are supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China, Natural Science Foundation of Shanghai, Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality, and Shanghai Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning.

P. Xavier-ElsasFederal University of Rio de JaneiroRio de JaneiroBrazilBiography

Biography of C.-X. Xu

I am a professor at Daping Hospital and Research Institute of Surgery, Third Military Medical University, China. I received my Ph.D from Seoul National university of Korea. I completed my postdoctoral training in the Department of Molecular Oncology at Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute. My research interests include non-coding RNA function in development and progression of cancer and the development and evaluation of novel therapies for cancer.

Biography of P. Zarogoulidis

Dr. Paul Zarogoulidis, M.D, MS.c, Ph.D, is a pulmonary physician with expertise in interventional pulmonology and lung cancer treatment. He is a member of CABIP, ERS, ATS, EABIP. He is an associate editor in 3 journals and editor in 14 journals. He has 250 publications on pub med. He has written 3 chapters in 3 books. He is the president of ``The Society for Diagnosis and Lung Cancer Treatment``. One his main interests is the development of novel inhalational drugs and inhalational delivery systems. He is currently working in the Pulmonary Department-Oncology Unit, ``Theageneio`` Anticancer Hospital, Greece and 3 different private hospitals.

Biography of S. Nara

Dr. Seema Nara is an Associate Professor in Department of Biotechnology, MNNIT Allahabad, India since April 2009. She has completed her doctorate from Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India in 2009 in the field of Immunodiagnostics. She has been working in the area of developing diagnostic solutions for detecting pathogens, cancer biomarkers, food/environment contaminants using antibodies and aptamers. Her group is actively engaged in exploring the applications of nanostructures diagnostics as well as therapeutics. She has successfully completed extramural projects in the area of her interest. Her research outcome is published in International journals of repute, as book chapters and is also evident from filed 03 patents.

Biography of M. Sedic

Dr. Mirela Sedic is Associate Professor at the University of Rijeka Department of Biotechnology in Croatia. She has authored more than 30 scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals including high-impact journals such as Molecular Cancer, The Journal of Pathology, Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, and Cancer Treatment Reviews. She is co-author of book chapters in Bioinformatics and Drug Discovery (Humana Press, 2012), Personalized Medicine: A New Medical and Social Challenge (Springer International Publishing, 2016), and has one international patent (WO/2010/052510). Her main research interests include cancer biology and signalling, experimental oncology, chemoresistance, sphingolipids in cancer and proteomics.

Biography of N.G. Yousif

Nasser Ghaly Yousif, MD, MSc, Post-doctorate fellow, is a graduate of Basrah University Medical College/Iraq. He trained in internal medicine at the University of Colorado and Oncology hematology at Ulm teaching hospital/Germany and the University of Colorado/USA. Yousif recently received the Win of first prize of Iraqi Science day 2016/Ministry of High Education and Scientific Research, beside other wards: MD-Anderson Prize/USA 2015, Travel grant, shock meeting/USA 2014, Travel grant, ASCO meeting 2014, Travel grant, ESMO conference/Italia 2013. Nasser Ghaly Yousif has published more than 30 paper researches in high quality Journals and revised more than 70 research manuscripts for high impact factor journals.